Water Needling Device

ABSTRACT

In a former known hydrodynamic needling device the material web which is meant to be consolidated or finished shall be drawn-in totally or just partly, thus automatically, by an auxiliary material-web drawing-in device. The auxiliary device can work with a frontrunner which is affixed at the beginning of the material web, and which is retracted into the whole machine, or only one part of the non-accessible, if applicable, rollers are driven round by an auxiliary device and the material web is therewith threaded in the provided material-web track.

A hydrodynamic needling device is generally known. This is reproduced in the preamble of the first claim. The usual continuous strips arranged there or the actual needling drums are self-threading for the new material web to be taken in, the material web merely needs to be laid on the respective roller and then the web should be further transported automatically. However, there are also devices of this type which are not only very large in their height dimensions so that an operator can no longer reach the individual material web conveying elements and/or the material web can have a width which can only be manipulated with difficulty. Several persons must assist with threading in the material web and they must climb to the necessary insertion height by means of a frame.

It is the object of the invention to develop a device whereby a material web can be laid automatically, substantially without the assistance of an operator over individual rollers or over all the deflecting rollers.

Starting from the device according to the preamble, the formulated object is achieved whereby for starting the device an auxiliary material-web drawing-in device is provided for drawing in the material web over the individual rollers of the entire device or only individual parts of the device. The threading-in device can have its own design independently of the elements of the needling device or it can be mounted on the rollers provided in any case for guiding the material web. Appropriately, merely a one-dimensional conveyer is used for threading-in, this conveyer being driven forward for threading-in with a securing device for the material web and then being pulled reversibly back again for taking in for a new application.

A device of the type according to the invention is shown as an example in the drawing. The FIGURE shows a water needling device with two needling stations and then, in this case, two. threading-in devices.

According to the example, the two needling stations A and B are arranged in a housing 1. They each consist of a screen drum 2, 3 which are driven to revolve anticlockwise. A plurality of nozzle beams 4 are radially allocated to the screen drums 2, 3 at the top and are mounted fixedly in the housing 1. Suction devices, not shown here however, are provided inside the screen drums at the height of the nozzle jets leaving the nozzle beams.

The material web runs into the needling device in the direction of the arrow 6 in the fundamental material transport direction and specifically lying on the continuous strip 7 whose upper strand side abuts tangentially against the underside of the screen drum 2. The material web 5 then loops around the screen drum 2 by more than 180° and is deflected upward by means of a deflecting roller 8 at the height of the intake. Three further deflecting rollers 9 are mounted rotatably in the housing 1 above the screen drum 2, which rollers deflect and carry the material web 5 back in the fundamental direction of material transport again. This is followed by an identical needling station B with the screen drum 3 which in this exemplary embodiment again revolves anticlockwise and on which the slide of the material web 5 which has already been needled is again exposed to the nozzle jets. This is followed by similarly arranged deflecting rollers 8′ and above the screen drum 3, the rollers 9′ are rotatably mounted in order to be able to remove the needled material web from the device in the direction of transport 6.

In the exemplary embodiments, the screen drums 2, 3 are, arranged at the working level of the operator. Thus, threading in the material web 5 is easily effected there. Otherwise, the return of the material web from the deflecting roller 8 over the rollers 9 toward the delivery roller 10 is now again at the height of the screen drum 3 on which the material web can again be grasped by the operator. The rollers 9 are arranged barely accessibly, in the housing 1 and far above the reach of the operator depending on the size of the overall device. For this reason, in this exemplary embodiment a threading-in device is only shown for the upper deflecting rollers 9.

A similar or differently constructed threading-in device can also be installed for threading the material web into the entire needling device with the stations A and B. This could be automatic or semi-automatic. A fully automatic threading-in device could consist of a forerunner which is fixed in front of the needling device with an additional water needling beam on the material web over its full area and which then guides the material web by means of cables, by means of cables which grip and guide the forerunner in the manner of shears, around all rollers, deflecting rollers, along strips or the like precisely as in the material web guidance provided for needling and can even thread the material web in the drier which usually follows.

A transfer band, a chain or a cable can be used for drawing in-the material web. For driving these elements for drawing in the material web it is important to thread in the material web at constant torque, at constant tensile force. This can be effected manually, using an electric or pneumatic motor, using a rotating magnet or using torsion springs.

In the present case, a reversible linear conveyer 11 is provided for threading in the material web 5 with reversibly drivable winders 12 disposed at the height of the deflecting rollers 9 in the housing 1, from which the conveyer 11, such as a cable, for example, is guided downward around a deflecting roller 13 arranged at the height of the screen drum 2. A detachable securing device 14 for the material web 5 to be drawn in is provided there in the upward-running strand side of the conveyor 11, this device being shown here as a cable loop. Any other fixing such as a previously made connection of the material web optionally with a forerunner, Velcro closure, a simple hook, eye or similar elements ran be used here. In any case, the material web 5 to be drawn in is secured to the conveyor and is drawn by the pull of the conveyor from a reversible winder 15 underneath the delivery roller 10 over the deflecting rollers 9.

After releasing the material web from the conveyor 11 at the height of the delivery roller 10, the material web 5 is gripped by the operator again and is guided around the screen drum 3 of the following needling station B. The same threading-in device with the same mode of operation is provided for this following needling station which is why the same reference numerals are used in the drawing.

The material web can have a narrow width but also a large width of more than 5 m. For large widths it is advantageous to reduce the width of the material web at the beginning. The linear, conveyor 11 provided, here is arranged on one side of the rollers 2, 3, 8, 9, 10 and is guided there in a small broadening of the roller oil its outer circumference. 

1. A water needling device beam consolidation or finishing of fibers of material webs which are guided continuously through a device comprising rollers mounted in a housing which transport the material web and optionally continuous strips, wherein at least one nozzle beam is allocated thereto transversely over the working width on the sided opposite to the bearing faces, said nozzle beam consisting of a) an upper portion with a1 pressure chamber arranged over its length, to which pressurized liquid is supplied, for example, at the front, and b) a pressure distribution chamber with intermediate wall parallel thereto, which is connected to the pressure chamber via liquid through-holes disposed in the intermediate wall, and c) a nozzle sheet mounted in a liquid-tight manner on the lower portion, provided with orifices for the nozzles, wherein d). on the area opposite to the liquid through-holes the pressure distribution chamber runs out into a slot which opens out onto the nozzle orifices of the nozzle sheet from which the nozzle jets are directed toward the material web and onto the transport underlay provided with a water suction device, and optionally disposed in this device, above or below the actual water needling device, are further deflecting rollers which guide the material web opposite to the fundamental direction of transport, and via which the material web is guided around the water needling device, characterized in that for starting the device an auxiliary material-web drawing-in device (11, 12, 14, 15) is provided for drawing in the material web (5) over the individual rollers (9, 9′) of the entire device or only individual parts of the device.
 2. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the auxiliary material-web drawing-in device is only provided for a part of the path of the material web in the needling device.
 3. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the auxiliary material-we drawing-in device is provided for the entire path of the material web in the needling device.
 4. The device according to claim 3, characterized in that the auxiliary material-web drawing-in device is effective partly or fully automatically.
 5. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the auxiliary material-web drawing-in device (11, 12, 14, 15) is arranged on the housing (1) of the entire device.
 6. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the auxiliary material-web drawing-in device is provided with elements which revolve continuously during the drawing-in of the material web.
 7. The device according to, claim 1, characterized in that the auxiliary material-web drawing-in device (11, 12, 44, 15) is provided with elements (12, 15) which are reversibly active.
 8. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the auxiliary material web drawing-in device only co-revolves for these provided deflecting rollers.
 9. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the auxiliary material-web drawing-in device (11, 12, 14, 15) is carried by the deflecting rollers 9′ provided for transporting the material web (5) in the needling device.
 10. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the, for example, non-consolidated material web is affixed over at least a part width to a forerunner which is guided by the auxiliary material-web drawing-in device through the needling device.
 11. The device according to claim 10, characterized in that the forerunner is connected to the material web by water needling.
 12. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the auxiliary material-web drawing-in device (11, 12, 14, 15) consists of a linear conveyer (11) which is mounted on the outer circumference of the roller (9, 9′) and on their end face as the operating side.
 13. The device according to claim 12, characterized in that the conveyor (11) is guided so that it cannot be displaced laterally on the rollers.
 14. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that two revolving winding devices (12, 15) which are driven to and fro and are interconnected by the conveyer (11) are disposed on the housing (1).
 15. The device according to claim 14, characterized in that the reversible winding devices (12, 15) are arranged one at the height of the necessary inlet of the material web (5) viewed in the direction of transport (6) of the material web and the other in the area of its outlet relative to a needling unit (A, B).
 16. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that a detachable securing device (14) for the material web (5) to be drawn in is provided for the material we (5) or part thereof.
 17. The device according to claim 16, characterized in that the securing device is provided as a loop (14) in or on the linear conveyor (11).
 18. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the reversible tensioning device (15) automatically stops at the height of the outlet in the area of the outlet of the needling device (A, B) on reaching the securing device (14) and when instructed, the securing device (14) is transported back again by winding the inlet winding device (12). 